8
I look down at my T-shirt and shake my head. It’s not something I would ever wear, the graphic is way too busy, but I can’t exactly insist on something else since this is what Jim wanted my character to be wearing for this scene. The sun is down, I left hair and makeup hours ago… and we still haven't shot a single second of the film.
I glance around the room and shake my head. There are dozens of people rushing in circles to try to get everything done, but it doesn't seem organized… the whole thing is chaotic. I make my way to a chair along the back wall and sit down to look over my script again. I worked on memorizing the dialogue for today as soon as I got off the phone with Spencer last night… and I'm pretty sure I've got it down perfectly, but I really want to be sure—I don't want to be responsible for wasted time once we finally start shooting.
“Where's Amy?”
I hear the booming voice carry over the drone of people working… it's Jim. I stand up and walk in the direction of his voice. Sweat is rolling down his face. He pulls a handkerchief from his pocket and wipes it away.
“Are you ready?” he says.
“Yes.”
I see Ethan walking toward us. He's looking down at his script and his lips move as he reads it. I really hope he's ready because we are already so far behind on the scenes we are supposed to do tonight. I did spend some time today looking at the scenes for tomorrow, but I'm certainly not comfortable with all the dialogue—I assumed we would be done at a reasonable time tonight and I would have a chance to get ready for tomorrow. Now… it's looking like it's going to be a late night of shooting followed by a really late night of memorization.
“Ethan?” Jim says, turning to my co-star.
“What?”
“Are you ready?”
“Sure.”
Jim shakes his head and walks toward one of the cameras. There's a couple set up inside to get us as we walk back inside and one on the balcony for the opening scene. I run my hand through my hair as we wait. It’s weird that they had to dye my hair and trim it earlier… I guess it’s to match the character, but it’s still strange to be a strawberry blond. I guess it looks all right… it’s just so different.
“Quiet on the set!” Jim says.
I head toward the balcony and look into the glass of the door as I get closer. I can see Ethan in the reflection, he’s a few steps behind me and still reading the script. He tosses it aside as I walk through the open door. I lean against the railing of the balcony and take a deep breath. There’s a strong breeze and I feel a chill sweep through my body in a matter of a few seconds. I really hope this scene doesn’t take too long to shoot.
“Is everyone ready?” Jim says.
I turn around and nod. He’s inside standing next to one of the cameras. Ethan is a few feet away from Jim, just waiting for his cue. I turn back around and try to slow my breathing. I’m not sure why I’m so nervous. I close my eyes, take a deep breath and try to clear my mind of everything other than the words I need to speak over the next minute.
“Action!”
I open my eyes and run my hand through my hair. I hear Ethan behind me as he walks onto the balcony. He stands next to me and holds out a flute of what is supposed to be Champagne. I take it from him, but don’t make eye contact. I take a long sip and lean against the balcony.
“How are you?” he says.
I glance over at him.
“Seriously? How do you think I am?”
He shrugs and shakes his head.
“I’m sorry… I know….”
I glance over at Ethan, but he has a blank look on his face.
“Line,” he says.
“Cut!”
I can hear the rage in Jim’s voice. Ethan takes the flute from me and heads back inside so we can start the scene over. Ugh, I guess it’s going to be a really long night. I watch as Jim walks up to Ethan and says something to him, but I can’t see Ethan’s face as he leans back in an attempt to cushion the blows from Jim.
Jim shakes his head and walks back toward the camera.
“Let’s go again… action!”
I turn back around and wait for Ethan. We recreate the scene as he comes out and hands me the flute. I take a sip and wait for him to deliver his line.
“How are you?”
“Seriously?” I say. “How do you think I am?”
“I’m sorry… I know an apology won’t fix what I did… but you have to believe that I still love you.”
I down the glass of sparkling cider in one swig and give him an irritated look.
“You still love me? Really?”
I throw the flute down and it shatters into a thousand tiny pieces. I walk inside and keep going until I’m by the cameras.
“Cut! Good job everyone… now let’s do it again.”
Twenty-one times. It’s still hard for me to believe we shot that first scene twenty-one times. I sit down on the couch in my dressing room and shake my head. I was perfect on my lines except for one slip up and Ethan pulled his act together and only made two more mistakes after the first one. I was actually surprised… I thought he was going to flub his lines more than that considering his seemingly total lack of interest and dedication to the movie.
I stand up and grab my phone out of my purse before sitting down again. We have twenty minutes or so to kill while they set up for the next scene and I don’t think I need to look over the script. I know it would be smart for me to work on my lines for tomorrow, but I don’t want to confuse them with what we are about to shoot so I decide to text Jess instead.
Hey, just started shooting. I’m on a short break so I figured I would text you and see how everything is going. We didn’t really talk about it before, but I obviously want you to be at the wedding. What’s your schedule like for the next few months? Spencer is coming here in ten days… so I guess I’ll talk to him and find out what his thoughts are for setting a date. Hope everything is good with you.
My phone chirps a few seconds later as I get a response from her.
Hi! Hope the shoot is going well! I absolutely will be at your wedding… the only thing that would stop me is if you got married on a day where I had a final or something… but other than that you can count on me. Would you mind terribly if I brought Logan? You can tell me if it would be awkward… I don’t mind. Let me know once you guys settle on a date so I can take the time off work and book a ticket. Did you want help with the planning?
A few weeks ago I don’t think I could have handled Logan being at my wedding… I just think it would've beentoo awkward, but I think now it would be all right especially since they're dating and she’s my best friend. I reply to her and hit send.
Of course Logan can come, as long as he’s good to you he’s welcome. I will definitely let you know as soon as we know. Brenda asked if I needed help planning… I just figured it would be too much considering how far apart we live and how busy you are with school and work. I hope you don’t mind.
I set my phone down and get up while I wait for a response. I open the door of the mini-fridge in my room and take out a bottle of water. My phone chirps just as I sit down.
It’s totally fine… and that would probably be better anyway. I would love to help, but I’m not sure how much I could really do. Having said that… I would love to plan your bachelorette party… if that’s OK with you and Brenda.
Bachelorette party… the thought hadn’t even crossed my mind. I’m a little scared of what kind of shenanigans Jess will come up with, but it could be fun. I hit send on my reply.
The bachelorette party is all yours. I’m not sure where exactly we are getting married… I’m assuming L.A., but you never know with Spencer. I’ll talk with him so that you can figure out what and where you want to do it.
There’s a knock on my door.
“Yes?”
“They are ready for you.”
Jess hasn’t responded yet, so I type out another message and hit send.
I’ve gotta get back to the set. I’ll talk to you soon.
I put my phone back in my purse and leave my dressing room. The set, which had previously been filled with production crew, has been transformed into the scene of a party and there are at least fifty extras standing around with drinks and plates of food. It’s amazing how quickly they were able to get everything ready. Maybe I was wrong… I guess it’s possible we just had to get over the hump of shooting the first scene and things will move more smoothly from here on in.
I spot Jim and Ethan talking on the far side of the room. I make my way over to them, picking my way through the throng of people as I do so. Some of the food on the plates looks good… and it reminds me I haven’t had anything to eat since this morning. Hopefully this scene won’t take too long and I can get something to eat when we finish.
“Amy,” Jim says, turning to me, “are you ready?”
“Yes.”
“You know the lines?”
“I think so.”
“You think so?”
“I know them.”
“Good… let’s get started.”
I nod and wait as Jim walks over to one of the cameras and has a quick word with his assistant director. He nods a few times and then turns his attention back to us.
“All right,” Jim says, “Amy… start walking from the balcony and head for the front door. Ethan… you start outside a few seconds after her and catch up to her just as she reaches the door. Put your hand up against it and slam it shut as she tries to open it. Got it?”
We both nod and head back over to the balcony. I close my eyes, take a couple of deep breaths and shake my arms out to get myself ready to do the scene.
“Action.”
I open my eyes and try to fill my body with the rage felt by Eva, my character, as I walk away from Ethan and toward the door at the other side of the room. The extras don’t move out of the way, which I guess is what Jim told them to do… and I’m forced to weave in and out to get through the crowded room. I reach the door and start to open in, but Ethan pushes it closed as he steps close to me.
“Wait,” he says, “you have to let me explain.”
I pull on the door, as instructed by the script, but he’s pushing on it hard enough that I can’t even budge it an inch. I sigh and turn my head toward him.
“Why? Tell me why I should listen to a word out of your mouth.”
He hangs his head and slowly drops his hand from the door.
“I love you… I’ve always loved you. If you ever loved me, even a little, you would let me explain.”
“That’s not fair… you know I loved you.”
“Then just listen to me.”
“No,” I say.
“This has all been a big mistake.”
I bite my lip and nod my head.
“You think so? I came home and you were in bed with my roommate. I would say you made a pretty big mistake.”
He takes a step back and turns away from me. I open the door and walk out. I slam the door as hard as I can, as instructed by the script.
“Cut!” Jim says, his voice carrying through the closed door.
I open the door and walk back in. Ethan is already on his way back to the balcony.
“Nice job, Amy… you too, Ethan,” Jim says.
“Thanks.”
“Let’s do it again… everyone back to starting positions!”
I have a feeling Jim is enjoying this more than any of us. I got the impression when we first met that he was tired of directors taking his scripts and turning them into something other than exactly what he envisioned when he wrote them. Now he’s getting his chance to control everything and when I walk by him the joyful look on his face tells me everything I need to know.
It’s going to be a long night… and a very long ten weeks. My day off can’t get here soon enough.